COST-BASED MANAGEMENT AND DECISION MAKING IN GREEK LUXURY HOTELS.docVIP

MunichPersonalRePEcArchive Cost-based Management and Decision Making in Greek Luxury Hotels StellaZountaandMichailG.Bekiaris UniversityoftheAegean,UniversityoftheAegean 4. July2009 Onlineathttp://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/25459/ MPRAPaperNo. 25459,posted28. September201002:54UTC  TOURISMOS: AN INTERNATIONAL MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF TOURISM Volume 4, Number 3, Spring 2009, pp. 205-225 COST-BASED MANAGEMENT AND DECISION MAKING IN GREEK LUXURY HOTELS Stella Zounta1 University of the Aegean Michail G. Bekiaris University of the Aegean The use of cost accounting systems by hotel businesses is improving the quality of decision making. The development of theories on costing, combined with advances in information technology, has improved the theoretical capabilities of such systems. However, two questions remain largely unanswered: a) whether these theories lead to tangible improvements; and b) what are the variables that drive the success of cost accounting systems. Our research shows that hotel managers need to be convinced about the use and performance benefits of such systems in the decision making process. Keywords: Cost Accounting, Decision Making, Luxury Hotels, Greece INTRODUCTION Managers everywhere make decisions based on accurate and timely information related to the internal and external environment of their organizations. While gathering external information depends on the quality of the overall state of the economy (accounting for transparency, administration, reliability, etc.) in which a firm and its competitors operate, managing internal information flows varies from one company to another. Regardless of its type, every internal reporting system of every firm depends on accounting channels of reporting, namely on managerial accounting. Managerial Accounting (which includes Cost-based Management, Budgeting and Budgetary Control) is concerned